I got a call from the local Diabetes Association and they want to come pick up stuff from me early May I have not dne a thing towards decluttering in my home since the last thread ended and so I am starting anew, with a change for this year. I'm going to create monthly declutter threads (though this is a short one now!). My intention is to post ONE small goal to complete in a month.

Will you join me in setting a goal to move one more babystep toward a more useful environment which helps support our health vs. adding to daily stress?

onebyone

04-18-2014 10:38 AM

My Task this month: clothing

OK Declutters! I am posting here that by the end of the month my intention is to sort through all my clothes and to keep only as much as I can store. With a permanent overflow on the floor in front of the bed it is getting very depressing as I am actually living out of laundry baskets and nevermaking it into the dresser I have or the closet.

This is DIRECTLY related to my weight as I continue to say to myself "When I am thinner I might want to wear this," or "I need this as a reminder from when I was thinner that I actually was that thin and could get here again," or I just have a belief that if I get rid of my smaller clothes I am telling my subconscious that I will *never* be smaller and I have given up on it.

REALITY CHECK HERE: if having smaller clothes DID motivate me, I would be wearing them not filling up my valuable storage space with them. Having smaller clothes is not a magical pill.

VermontMom

04-18-2014 04:51 PM

I am a sometimes contributer here :) I have not read The Beck Diet Solution but I embrace ladies who have clutter problems as I do!

I will list2 goals at least, because I have almost 3 weeks off and have no excuse not to.

1st - emptying completely, a junked 7 passenger van that has been dead in our driveway for..lord, almost FOUR years..my husband then started putting stuff in it, treating it as storage..ugh..I would take a peek and then think NO way, because it wasn't even my doing :( but it wouldn't get done. It took up a huge space in our driveway, we had to shovel around it in winter, we have to drive 3 motorcycles and 3 cars all around it in summer..it's nuts! :tantrum:

I have learned to do some "pre-de-cluttering"..I have to be not hungry or thirsty..I have to wear comfortable clothes and boots/sturdy shoes (because of climbing in and around the van, the side door nor rear hatch don't work!) I have to bring out a big box for Save, a big box for Re-Use, and a big trash bag for trash; and I have to STOP after no more than 2 hours so I don't get discouraged and crabby. And I have to be prepared to haul away a good portion so it looks like I made a difference, so the Re-Use center has to be open and my car has to be ready to accept.

So I started yesterday, quit after 2 hours, and saw that I could easily finish in another day or 2! Got almost everything out today; took a load to Re-Use and recycling center (cost - 50 cents!) bags of garbage tied up and ready for Tuesday pickup; and did have to bring some boxes into the storage area of the house, but I'm okay with that. Called local junkyard and arranged for hauling away of van on Monday, and I get $100 :)

I will be so happy to have that hulking eye-sore beast dragged out of here!

Second - my closet. I swear I do it every year but I guess that's kinda normal. Go through each hanging item and decide on it's fate. I also have my 'fit' clothes and my 'frumpy/chubby' clothes..I buy alot of clothes from Goodwill so I don't care about price. And go through shoes/boxes on the floor.

Hope it's okay I'm being a butt-insky :)

Electro

04-18-2014 08:03 PM

So I am coming in from the shadows and posting my goals for the month.

I have gone through my closets and other clothes storage areas and I have put everything in boxes ready to go out.

So my goal is to actually get the boxes and bags out of the house. I get anxious over this as I am always wondering if I am throwing out something useful. So now I pack things up and put a use by date on the box. If I haven't gone through the box to look for something specific by that date it gets sent away. So far I only miss one item that may be in the boxes, so I will sort through for it and take the boxes away as they are done. Phew, that will make the spare room habitable again and only the bathroom cupboards are left for me to rummage through and 'discover' what is in them, get it organized and useable again.

Things are still messy, but this will give me space to start sorting out more things again.

I am pleased with my progress though. New things are not creeping in like they used to. Old things are either being out to use or put aside rather than taking up cupboards space.

Most of the clutter is surface clutter now, looks bad but is not as overwhelming as it was before.

Onebyone I heAr you on not wanting to throw out the thinner clothes, I did manage that and that was part of the motivation for starting the weight loss. Giving up the old thin me kickstarted the ability to lose weight again. Plus none of those clothes were going to be 'fashion' by the end of my weight journey. I do have a box of sentimental favorites such as bridesmaids dresses. But one box only. If I want to add to it I have to take something out.

It's the big clothes that I am holding onto at the moment, but I have been in maintenance for about 11 months now. It is time.

onebyone

04-20-2014 08:56 PM

committing to:

Hi

Welcome Electro and welcome back VermontMom. It's nice to have some company here.

Tomorrow I am going to make decisions about the clothes in the laundry baskets. I may have 3 baskets. Maybe 2. Some are clean. Some are dirty. I have a lot of clothes I don't like much. What's dirty I'll wash. I'm going to start a give away bag, and have a garbage bag on hand for the stuff that just isn't any good. By the end of the day I want those baskets empty and stored somewhere.

BillBlueEyes

04-20-2014 09:08 PM

Hope you accept tiny accomplishments.

Just cut up some five large cardboard boxes with assorted support cardboard to go out in three full recycle bins.

Seems that I have a habit of saving the boxes from a purchase thinking, in case we have to return it. A good idea - for a short spell. But after we've cooked on the grill, put the TV on the console, and used the light since Christmas, it's time to let the city sell the cardboard to the recycle folks.

Small steps.

silverbirch

04-21-2014 03:01 AM

Good morning!

With the extended family. Today I'm going to my uncle's (87) and will remove 4 bags of rubbish. Moved one last night. At my mother's (89) will move an old blind and some other things. Move = take to tip. Finish breaking up fencing panels for kindling (the DB, almost 14, is leading on that, using ninja skills.) Text builder who's left stuff in garage for two years to say we need space by Wednesday.

You're all doing very well! Holly, I've got out a flag to wave when your old wreck is towed away today.

Pattience

04-21-2014 03:30 AM

My goal for this month should really be building a house for my ducks but as the weather is getting cooler at night, i don't think the danger is so great as it was. I 'm going to put that goal on hold to be done before September though.

My goal for this month, is then , um, make a success of my wrap dress. I'm sewing this dress for my market stall. Its based on one i bought but altered a bit. i've made a fair start but have stalled a bit on it. I know it will be great for my stall when its finished but its sort of tough going.

Anyway if i could finish the current one this week and make a few extras in different sizes for my stall, i would be totally thrilled because i am confident it will sell well.

VermontMom

04-21-2014 07:53 AM

Electro, the 'use by' date is a very good idea to put on boxes! A box is just a box, unless it has a message on it that prods us :)

onebyone, hope you are successful with your goal today about the laundry baskets.

Bill, oh those empty cardboard boxes! Yes they are extremely useful if you need them to return items..and then they are forgotten. Thank goodness they break down flat and don't cost anything to recycle!

SliverBirch, I am LOL'ing at the visual of the DB using ninja skills to break down the fence into kindling :D Thank you for being ready for that flag to wave :) And I will post here when it is hauled away today (and I get $100, remember when we had to pay to have a junker hauled away?)

Pattience, hope you get your dress done as you wish.

Lexxiss

04-21-2014 08:22 AM

Hi everyone!

I'm short on time, mainly because I slept in and decided NO CHOICE to my 3 essentials....laundry, dishes, make bed. Credit.

We started working on clearing space at our other house for a bedroom for DD and kids. Everything of my hubbys got moved elsewhere, excepting his closet. We ripped old carpet and I put in vinyl. I did a pretty good job. Yay. Now it's making space for everything else. I took the lead and sorted through a living room bookcase so DH could now share. I got rid of a lot of books...someone else will enjoy them. I made a small pile to bring to the other house, mostly cookbooks. Now he can go through his this week. (He's there, I am here LOL)

:wave: everyone! I've got to head to work.

Re:clothesonebyone, as I've lost weight I have found that most of the clothes I "saved" for a smaller me have not been appealing to me when I got to that size. They are gone. The only items I really found that I have enjoyed wearing at each smaller size were really special items I had purchased when I was originally at that size....really nice things. I also purchased some really nice items (4 or 5) at super sale prices that I wanted to fit into. I really like all those. My take is that I have changed as I've come down in size and my tastes have changed, too. Since I'm still not at my ideal weight I purchase very little. When I have an occasion, like last summers wedding, I go and purchase the bare minimum of what I need. I'll do that again this summer when we head to KeyWest for memorial for my BIL.
It feels so great to have a space for everything at my current weight.

Best wishes as we all declutter and Bon Voyage to the van!

VermontMom

04-21-2014 01:26 PM

Hi Lexxiss and Bon Voyage, the blue van has SAILED outta here! :carrot: and they gave me a check for $150, 50 more than I anticipated, woohoo :D

silverbirch

04-21-2014 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverbirch
(Post 4988429)

Good morning!

With the extended family. Today I'm going to my uncle's (87) and will remove 4 bags of rubbish. Moved one last night. At my mother's (89) will move an old blind and some other things. Move = take to tip. Finish breaking up fencing panels for kindling (the DB, almost 14, is leading on that, using ninja skills.) Text builder who's left stuff in garage for two years to say we need space by Wednesday.

You're all doing very well! Holly, I've got out a flag to wave when your old wreck is towed away today.

Took 6 bags from my uncle's + one tin can, 5 glass jars and 3 plastic containers (small). And 2 rusty saws. Failed to get him to ditch a two foot high pile of newspapers, 3 cardboard boxes or 2 dirty carpet tiles. But I did better than I thought.

Took that + my mum's stuff to the tip. Car boot full again with broken glass from her greenhouse and garden waste. That's another trip for tomorrow or Wednesday. Wood is all broken or sawn up, ready to move when I've got space in a vehicle. (Had to buy a new saw - long story.) Builder is coming tomorrow morning (fingers crossed).

Have also descaled the kettle and will run the washing machine to clean it tomorrow. Got the DB to dust up high and the SO decided independently to clean kitchen thoroughly as well as making all the meals, in association with Mum.

Phew. Tomorrow is a day of errands but it will doubtless have its fair share of cardboard and weeds in it.

Good luck, everyone! Holly, $150 is wonderful!

helping rachel

04-22-2014 11:27 AM

Hi all!

Glad to be back on this thread with an intention to declutter. My goal is to let go of 4 bags of clothes for goodwill. I would like that done by Thursday of this week. I have 2 bags from my daughters closet that will go to a resale shop. Not sure if they will take any of it but it will be on its way out.

I plan to accomplish one thing off the standard cleaning plan each week. I have this all or nothing mindset sometimes and never get to the "extra" areas that need focus. I plan to hold myself accountable on here and hopefully have at least 4 posts a month with some type of goal.

I'm here to report that I completed emptying 1 laundry basket. I've put it underneath another basket so I don't get tempted to fill it again. It was 1/2 dirty clothes, 1/2 clean.

I put the clean clothes into my dresser drawer.
There were some winter clothes in it: scarves, mitts, hat, stuff I could have used a month ago. I have no real place to store that stuff yet so I moved it onto the futon in the other room for now. I'll be able to get at the closet when I finish clearing the stuff off the floor.

The dirty clothes are being washed now.

I started a donate bag. I have 6 or 7 things in it now plus I am donating the bathroom toiletries set that is too big and clunky for the small side cabinet I have.

I also started a garbage bag and put in my only pair of jeans that I (sadly. sigh) wore through at the inner thigh. I had thought I would out grow these jeans before that happened. Out grow as in they would have been way too big by now. Instead they were getting tight again. Oh well. That's my reality for today.